5/13 Meet the Presenters: Gary Miller, NUTN 2008 Distinguished Service Award Recipient, provides a sneak preview on his speech entitled "Convergence or Transformation? Alternative Futures for Distance Education."

JS: Congratulations on being the NUTN 2008 Distinguished Service Award Recipient! The title of your talk refers to Convergence or Transformation as alternative futures for distance education. What do you see as the difference between the two? Do you see one as being a better future than another, and if so, why?

GM: Convergence is underway as a kind of natural progression. As online learning matures, practices that used to be isolated in distance education are moving into the mainstream of campus-based instruction through the use of hybrid courses, blended programs, and innovations like CIC Courseshare and the Open Educational Resources movement. However, if we step back from these, I think we can see that the long-term impact of online learning (and of the convergence with campus instruction) is that it will
help our institutions transform themselves to meet the challenges of
educating a workforce and a citizenry for the knowledge economy. The
needs of the Information Revolution are markedly different from the needs
of the Information Revolution (out of which many of our institutions were formed).
Not the least of these needs is to redefine community in a globalized economy.
These are big challenges, and I hope that our field will lead the way in helping
with that transformation.

JS: Of all the possible alternative futures for distance education, what specific development would you most like to see happen by the year 2020?

GM: The first development would be the general integration of "lifelong learning" (not "adult education," but "lifelong learning") into the mission and funding policies of our public institutions, so that distance education becomes a routine function of the University and not a cash cow on the side. The second would be the growth of inter-institutional networks (regionally, nationally, globally) to ensure that all students have access to the very best we can provide.

JS: Is there a current trend in distance education which particularly bothers you? If so, what is it, and what advice do you have for practitioners to change this trend for the better by the year 2020?

GM: What bothers me most is that--in the midst of what can truly be called a revolution in education--we tend to be focused on the technology and on short-term goals rather than on the bigger picture of what distance education can do to help our society adapt to a radically different way of working and living. I think we need to lift our eyes to the horizon a bit more often.

JS: Thanks for your responses, Gary, and once again congratulations! I look forward to your speech…